“But Christ came into the world not so that we should understand him but so that we should cling to him, so that we simply let him pull us ​ into the unbelievable event of the resurrection, so that we simply have it said to us, said to us in all its incomprehensibility: You have died - and yet ​ you have been raised! You are in the darkness - and yet you are in the light. You are afraid - and yet you can be glad. Right next to each other the ​ completely contradictory, right next to each other, just the way the two worlds, our world and the world of God, are right next to each other.” ~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Beloved:

I’m now twice the age Dietrich Bonhoeffer was when he preached this sermon in Berlin in June of 1932. Hitler came to power within months, and Dietrich’s life was two-thirds over though he did not know it. Had he known, I suspect he’d have been far bolder. But he sits with me here and now, young enough to be my son, and yet he’s the one nudging me through another political transition, as preachers everywhere wait to see against what sort of power the Christian gospel will be called to push in months and years to come.

Of all we cannot know, what we do not have to figure out is what God would have us say and do. Because God’s will does not change with the political winds of time or place. Common sense adjustments, yes. Tactical revisions, maybe. Fundamental change of mission and priorities, nope. We are here to love God, love each other, and love the world as Jesus first loved us. With our goods, with our bodies, with our reputations and, should it come to it, with our lives, knowing that nothing necessary is ever lost. For, just as we have died, we have also already been raised. Therefore, we can be glad. We can be at peace. We can enjoy today and look forward to tomorrow.

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I write a Tuesday morning devotional to members and friends of UBC. It is also posted here. Enjoy! Pastor Annette

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